No fodder for chest pounding today; no extraordinary effort or action, but an extraordinary day in it's own right if nothing else due to the weather. In particular during the late afternoon when the crystal clear atmosphere revealed such intense contrast - every cloud, every color, every ridge on the island, every perimeter was razor sharp. Long time veteran angler Andy Smith described it perfectly in a conversation we were having while he was pulling on a fish in the bow. "It's in high definition" was his comment about the stunning overall vista. There were more than a few times during the day I was taken aback both by the surrounding images, and group of anglers on board, some of whom I have cherished memories of fishing with going back almost twenty five years.

Our morning began on the right note immediately setting us on the trajectory we were seeking but for the one or two deuces to compliment the spoils. Unshaken however we were ready to continue with our fishing strategy until it quickly became obvious that this was going to be a different day. It was more of a sense than anything, of which I have shared plenty in past narratives, but both Randy and I knew in very short order that things today were different - and not for the better. Actually I mentioned something in yesterday's edition about success here being a little less than certain. There you go.

Regardless of our laments the obvious motivated a categorical search that ultimately lead us back to almost exactly where we began both days. It took a few fishless hours of driving and looking before we settled down and resolved to make the most of what we had, but in the end we were rewarded for prudence. There are times when the big hit just isn't in the cards. Scratching on such occasions is better than nothing. In fact, scratching something is always better than nothing - unless one is sacrificing the big hit out of timid favor.

Such was not the case today, and we were happy for it. Plugging away at a fine catch adding twenty three more good ones to the tally served our cause well. As such we are all in believing that we will not only continue scratching, but that we will see another big day or two by the time we must leave. That is pure optimism speaking this time, at present I have little sense of what is to come. The one thing certain is a sufficient amount of bigger fish around to get the job done. They are definitely here - we saw far more indications than what we caught while touring around. Perhaps a couple more days off this moon will do the trick. If so we certainly won't be caught by surprise.

Photo today features a Royal Star icon in every respect. Warren Sakamoto has shared so many past voyages, and so much good fishing with us, I can't begin to recall even a fair portion of it all. What I do recall on every occasion is Warren's incredible fishing ability that is always evident when fishing for tuna. Yellowfin, Bluefin, Albacore, Bigeye - it doesn't matter, Warren's passion for catching tuna is unquenchable. Today's photo was taken up the side while Warren subdued one of several good one's he hooked today. Take note of the weather in the background while you're at it. To cite the old cliche - "it doesn't get any better than this"; enough said.

Tim Ekstrom

Photo Here...